The Tao Made Easy

With the exception of the Bible, the classic Tao Te Ching is the best-selling book in history. But its interpretation and application remain a mystery to many of us, living as we do in a far more complicated and fast-paced world than the world in which Chinese sage Lao Tse penned his 81 stanzas 2,500 years ago. In The Tao Made Easy, Alan Cohen—author of the beloved A Course in Miracles Made Easy—takes the lofty and enigmatic concepts of the Tao and brings them down to earth in modern language with lots of practical examples readers can apply to their daily lives to get real and lasting results.

Alan’s take on the Tao sets itself apart from other interpretations in two key ways. First, he presents the teachings according to the major themes of the Tao rather than marching through the verses one by one and explaining them as most interpretive texts do. Second, he has found an original and engaging way to bring the lessons around each theme to life, using short dramatic vignettes in which he poses as a student of Lao Tse and interacts with the sage directly and intimately as he wends his way through the challenges and triumphs of his own spiritual journey.

“An ancient Chinese blessing wishes, ‘May you live in interesting times.’ That wish has come true for us,” Alan writes in the introduction to The Tao Made Easy. “Now how do we deal with it? Has any wisdom been given to humanity that can help us navigate a world spinning faster than we can control?” The answer is yes—and this delightfully readable, directly impactful guide puts it right in our hands.